


stunned speechless

by ZealousM



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: +1 soft Maknae, Baby Boy Jung Wooyoung, Body Dysphoria, Body Image, Canon Compliant, Fluff, Gentle Kissing, Hurt/Comfort, Kissing, M/M, Mild Angst, Not In Chronological Order, Soft hyungs, brief mention of eating disorder, so many different kisses
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:02:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,946
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26226847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZealousM/pseuds/ZealousM
Summary: The air isn't awkward. It isn't thrumming with desire. It is just a lofty peace that Wooyoung positively melts in.(Or, In which the ever present, boisterous Wooyoung receives different kinds of kisses from his Hyungs and a Maknae that leave him soft, puzzled, and sometimes uncharacteristically at a loss for words.)
Relationships: Choi Jongho/Jung Wooyoung, Choi San/Jung Wooyoung, Jeong Yunho/Jung Wooyoung, Jung Wooyoung/Everyone, Jung Wooyoung/Kang Yeosang, Jung Wooyoung/Kim Hongjoong, Jung Wooyoung/Park Seonghwa, Jung Wooyoung/Song Mingi
Comments: 20
Kudos: 188





	1. Yunho - Hand kisses

**Author's Note:**

> Wooooow here I am writing a fanfiction!? I thought I was done with that many moon's ago until K-pop ruined my life with a swiftness lol. This story will live up to its T rating and will be relatively tame because I feel like we are all in need of some soft!Wooyoung being cuddled and nuzzled and kissed! Each chapter will be a different kind of kiss with a different member + an additional chapter for an epilogue. I hope you all enjoy!
> 
> Not beta'd.

“Yunho-ah!” Wooyoung’s voice is airy as it always is; a contrast to the way he moves to barrel into Yunho’s personal space. Good thing Wooyoung knows his hyung doesn’t really mind. 

Yunho hums his response and smiles fondly at Wooyoung and cards his fingers once through the freshly-dyed black locks. Wooyoung returns the smile at the gesture, head minutely tilting back to encourage the taller boy to do it again. 

“I just finished watching your M2 interview with Sannie,” Wooyoung says with a playful lilt to his tone. 

“Oh?” Yunho strokes his fingers through Wooyoung’s hair again. He watches as Wooyoung’s eyes flutter slightly at the sensation before he loudly clears his throat and stands up straighter. Yunho chuckles and takes a few steps back, creating some space between himself and Wooyoung. Wooyoung is having _none_ of that as he latches his hands around the top of Yunho’s jean-jacket clad bicep. 

“Yeah! You’re really not great at ASMR, by the way,” Wooyoung pauses and slips a hand down the fabric of Yunho’s arm before reaching his hand. “But I did want to see something…” he trails off and lifts Yunho’s hand to his own, mimicking the gesture San and Yunho had done during the interview to demonstrate the difference in their hand sizes. 

Wooyoung pouts as he notices that his hands are even _smaller_ than San’s! The tip of his middle finger reaches just past Yunho’s second knuckle. “Geez, I knew you had monster hands but I didn’t know they were this big,” Wooyoung grumbles, still gawking over the size difference. 

Yunho's eyes squint as he laughs one of those warming, open-mouthed laughs at Wooyoung’s displeasure. “Maybe you just have-” Yunho grabs for Wooyoung’s other hand and curls his fingers over the tops of Wooyoung’s before he continues, “-tiny, baby hands. Are you sure you’re not our real Maknae?” Yunho throws his head back this time with barely muffled laughter as Wooyoung bristles and snatches his hands out of Yunho’s. 

  
  


\--

  
  


It had been another thirteen-plus hour day for the group. Make-up at eight-am, followed by a nearly-three hour photoshoot with little to no breaks in between. Then, prep with PD-nim for interviews and two new stages coming up over the next few days. With comeback season in full swing, rest was back to being a novelty. So when it was nearing 11pm and Yunho found that he had _just_ enough drive to play a round, maybe two, of League of Legends with San and Wooyoung before positively passing out in his bunk, he seized the opportunity at full force. 

One round turned into two, then three, and then- _crap_ is it really almost 1am?! Yunho groans to himself, already able to see Hongjoong’s pinched expression of annoyance aimed at him when he knows it’ll be a hassle to get him out of bed if he doesn’t go to sleep in about 2 minutes. 

“YUNHO-HYUNG!” Yunho jumps at the screaming coming from his headset. He blinks for a minute before looking back to his laptop screen, watching as his champion gets absolutely destroyed by minions. How long had he been AFK for? 

“Oh my-Hyung will you just move those stupid big hands of yours _back_ to your keyboard and actually play before we get our asses handed to us from bots?” Wooyoung’s voice sounds both tired and miffed. Yunho smiles to himself and releases a barrage of attacks at the minions in response. 

According to Wooyoung, Yunho’s spacing out had cost them a match to bots, _bots_ as Wooyoung made sure to reiterate. Yunho leans back into his chair, one of his legs outstretched while the other kept a light bend at the knee. Wooyoung had stomped into Yunho’s room after their so-called “dire loss” and stood in front of the taller boy with arms crossed over his chest and a furrow to his brow. 

“What?! It’s not that big of a deal, Young-ah,” Yunho sighs with a smile as he gets to his feet and comes closer to Wooyoung. 

Wooyoung casts his gaze down to his own neon-socked feet and works his lip between his teeth. “Yeah well, it sucks when you’re probably 5 wins away from Gold and you end up losing a match to _bots,”_ he whines. He looks up at Yunho beneath his lashes, then grabs Yunho’s hands dangling at his sides. He examines them and straightens out finger after finger before he speaks again, softer this time, “I swear you can probably reach the furthest key on each side with just one hand. You do know you have perfect gaming hands, right? Mine are just, stubby.” Wooyung crinkles his nose. 

Yunho hums and this time catches Wooyoung by the wrists, surprising him as he rubs the pads of his thumb up the inside of the younger’s wrist, slowly stroking up to the warm, creased skin of his palm. Wooyoung swallows; adam’s apple bobbing and stays uncharacteristically quiet. 

“Oh, but the opposite,” Yunho murmurs, eyes still on Wooyoung’s hands as he caresses every finger. 

“What?” Wooyoung is a little breathless and his head is tilted to the side in bewilderment. 

“The opposite.” Yunho shifts and holds onto Wooyoung’s fingers, bringing them closer to his face. His breath crosses over his knuckles as he starts speaking again, “You have really pretty hands.” A kiss is dropped right on the top of Wooyoung’s hand. 

Wooyoung’s eyes widen almost comically and he is one second away from snatching his hand away from Yunho’s grasp until Yunho does it again but to his other hand this time. Wooyoung sucks both his lips between his teeth as he fights to find something to say. 

And just like that, Wooyoung feels like he is under water because the moment is over and everything seems to be moving slow and heavy as Yunho envelops him in a tight hug before he is ushered out of the room with a ‘good night’ on his heels.

Wooyoung stands outside the closed door and resurfaces, looking at his hands. Tries to look at them the way Yunho sees them. Wooyoung side-smiles and heads back to his own room. 


	2. San - Butterfly kisses

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello friends! Thank you to all who kudos, commented, subscribed and bookmarked; it really doest the heart good. I wrote this whole thing while in bed today in quarantine so this chapter is definitely not light-hearted like the first one. I feel like there will be a good mix or some angst and hurt/comfort elements in this fic. But! Be mindful of the tags and take care of yourself, okay? TW: For body image issues, mentions of weight loss, and an eating bulimia attempt.

Wooyoung’s perception of himself is steady warping. 

He’s aware that in front of the camera he exudes confidence, but how could he not? Wooyoung always highly regarded the make-up team that KQ put together during every comeback era. This particular team had a mix of the old crew and a few new noonas that worked literal  _ magic _ ; even if they did flatter him and the rest of the members saying that they didn’t need much makeup. Whether it was a variety show, a virtual interview, a fan-call, or even a stage performance, Wooyoung liked the way he looked and he wasn’t afraid to show his self-appreciation.

Now, he’s grown to have some mounting opposition to what he sees when he looks in the mirror. Whether it be the dorm mirror that greets him with a freshly-rested Wooyoung with no makeup, or the giant lit-up mirrors at the studio that offers him a more done-up, refined appearance. 

They finished make-up about 15 minutes ago and are now waiting on the stylists to wrap-up final touches before the start of their virtual interview in another hour. Wooyoung long abandoned the makeup chair and is instead lounging on a couch towards the back of the studio, attempting to put as much space between him and the possibility of running into his reflection as he can. Wooyoung tried to keep his eyes closed the majority of the time he had his makeup applied until a noona gently tapped the ball of his nose with the edge of a brush to remind him to open his eyes for certain parts. Even so, Wooyoung would try to keep his eyes unfocused or stare at the makeup noona instead of his reflection. He did feel a twinge of guilt with how fast he bolted from the seat when she finished instead of staying put for a minute to compliment and thank her for her hard work. 

A few more minutes pass and Wooyoung is sincerely bored. He really,  _ really _ , wants to take out his phone, but he knows PD-nim would have a fit if he did. Typically the members are discouraged from too much phone use before an interview or a stage so they are not at risk of their minds being tugged elsewhere. Wooyoung knows that he could just get up and hang around someone else from the group to ease his boredom. He glances over at San as he thinks, their eyes meeting for a moment in the mirror; San winks. Wooyoung immediately looks away and crosses his arms over his chest. 

Wooyoung loves being around San. He loves their comfortable silences, he loves the way San eggs him on and hypes him up, he loves the way San turns into a ragdoll the moment he gets his hands on his hyung. But, Wooyoung knows if he gets around San now, the questioning looks he’s been giving him lately will continue; the quiet touches that used to be playful and affectionate would now radiate concern. Wooyoung wishes in that moment that he didn’t live for touch and that it wasn’t one of his favorite ways to show affection to his hyungs and to his makane. But now, now the touches made his skin crawl and his stomach flip. 

Wooyoung takes a chance look around to make sure no one is actively paying attention to him before he is on his phone and quickly pulling up YouTube. He has a throwaway account with one playlist  _ full _ of his own fancams that he watches over, and over. Originally, watching the fancams would give him a giddy sense of enjoyment to see people single him out and enjoy his expression of passion through his dance and singing. San had been the first one to show Wooyoung a video dedicated to him and they both watched with their heads close together in awe. They never read the comments, mostly because they were English and Wooyoung still had a hard time with reading some of them, plus he really just wanted to watch more videos of himself and San was always happy to oblige. 

In a short amount of time, Wooyoung’s curiosity had built to an annoying itch when he was waiting for an ad to finish on another fancam video of Wave. He convinced himself that he was absent-minded when he scrolled down. It just so happened that the first comment he saw had been recently posted and though it was in English, there was one word he did recognize: fat. Wooyoung wasn’t naïve enough to believe that he would be without negativity in his collaborative climb to stardom; it didn’t make the sting any less sharp. 

Google translate roughly explained to Wooyoung that the comment said “ _ Look how fucking fat Wooyoung looks in this. Someone fire the stylist that put him in leather pants  _ 🤢”. 

Wooyoung knew he should have told someone. He knew it should have either been San or Hongjoong and he knew that he would leave the conversation feeling 100-times better. He didn’t do it. He picked through comment after comment, didn’t care about the language and tried his best to translate what he could. The loving words from his fans bounced off of him like springs and the hurtful, hateful comments burned themselves behind the surface of his skin; so close and always at the surface but not easily seen from anyone on the outside. 

Wooyoung is now hyper-fixated on a translated comment from a 2 month old fancam. Just as he finishes typing the comment word for word into google translate, there is a hand gently placed on the crown of his head and he jumps so hard the phone is hurdled out of his hand and clatters to the floor. Wooyoung doesn’t look up but instead lunges for his phone that is face-up and unlocked. San--being as lithe and quick as he is--reached the phone first even though he was originally behind Wooyoung. 

He doesn’t have to look at the bad Korean translation to the right of the screen to read what the comment says. 

_ God, I wish KQ would just kick Wooyoung out and bring Junyoung back. How is he even a main dancer? He’s rarely in the front! Maybe they just want his ugly, fat ass to take up all that space in the back lmao. _

San is looking at him now and Wooyoung can’t bear to look him in the eye. Instead, his eyes are on his phone squeezed so tight in San’s left hand. “Young-ah?”

Wooyoung is burning with shame; he’s frozen in his spot on the couch and hopes with all of his might that San will just give him back his phone and pretend like he didn’t see anything. 

Wooyoung knows that San  _ definitely _ knows that there is something going on with him. Wooyoung doesn’t actively avoid San, but he also doesn’t seek him out anymore because he just can’t deal with all of the attention. He doesn’t feel like he deserves it anymore. San is just so damn beautiful that Wooyoung can’t believe it sometimes. And Wooyoung used to think he was beautiful, too. Now, all he can see is fat, ugly, chubby. He doesn’t want to be touched or seen like that. 

San locks Wooyoung’s phone and pockets it before turning on his heel and walking away without a word. Wooyoung is tense, but still thankful no one seemed to notice their charged moment. 

—

The interview was short, thankfully only lasting about half an hour. There were two rows of four seats; Wooyoung sat in the top right with Jongho to his left. San was on the first row seated between Seonghwa and Yeosang. Even with his back to him, Wooyoung still felt like San’s attention was on him the whole time. 

There was a point in the interview where a question had been directed at Wooyoung in regards to what he was looking forward to the most with debuting their newest single, Answer. Jongho’s hand cupping his right knee snatched Wooyoung out of his thoughts and landed him in the awkward space between not knowing what the interviewer had asked and a terse, annoyed look from Hongjoong a few seats down to his left. 

The tips of Wooyoung’s ears were burning as he barely spoke above a whisper, “I-I’m sorry. Could you please repeat the question?” Thank God this wasn’t live. 

The interviewer happily restated his question and Wooyoung did his best to pull on the charm that seemed to have sunk to the very soles of his feet. Jongho’s hand remained a calming anchor on his knee, even if the touch was wandering dangerously close to the border of uncomfortable.

Wooyoung didn’t want to be touched anymore. He didn’t deserve it. Someone like San, someone like Yeosang, Seonghwa, or Mingi, Jongho, Hongjoong, or Yunho, they all deserved to be touched and admired with their beautiful profiles, inviting smiles, and all around alluring selves. Wooyoung was just—he wasn’t enough.

Wooyoung was thankful that their manager took it easy on him and didn’t scold him in front of the other members; perhaps he already knew that Hongjoong would take care of it back at the dorms. Somehow, that almost seemed worse. 

Thankfully, the members give Wooyoung some space and disperse as soon as they arrive back at the dorms. Hongjoong puts his hand in the crook of Wooyoung’s elbow to lead him to his and Seonghwa’s room. Wooyoung swallows and obliges without complaint, knowing it’ll be over quicker this way. 

Seonghwa is in their room with his laptop tucked underneath an arm and a blanket bunched up under the other. When he looks at Wooyoung, he smiles but his eyes are brimming with a mixture of concern and fondness. If Wooyoung didn’t feel so displaced in his own mind, he would have returned to look with an affectionate eye-roll. Seonghwa moves to give the two privacy, not before pressing his forehead against Wooyoung’s for a beat. Usually his most comforting gesture; Wooyoung flinches back at the contact. Seonghwa pulls away just as quickly and the fondness in his eyes morphs to hurt. Wooyoung swallows and drops his gaze to his feet, shame prickling through the tips of his fingers. 

With the soft  _ click _ of the door closing, Wooyoung is left with his eyes still glued downwards and a silent Hongjoong. 

Is he waiting for him to speak first? Wooyoung rolls his tongue around in his mouth, and squeezes his arms tighter around himself. When had he done that?

Hongjoong clears his throat and Wooyoung slowly moves his eyes forward. Hongjoong is sitting on the edge of the bed now, finger making a ‘come hither’ motion at his dongsaeng. 

When Wooyoung is seated next to his leader, he’s sure Hongjoong takes note of how far he sits away from him to avoid any unwanted touching. 

“I’m not angry, you know?”

Wooyoung laughs a mirthless laugh. “Yeah, you’re just disappointed.” Wooyoung searches for something to focus on behind Hongjoong’s head before he continues, “I’ve been on the end of one of these talks a few times over the last year and half.”

“No, I’m not disappointed either,” Hongjoong challenges with a neutral expression.

Wooyoung is suddenly uncomfortable and squeezes his arms tighter. 

Hongjoong makes to reach out and touch Wooyoung’s knee but stops abruptly when he notices the disquieted look that flickers over Wooyoung’s face. Hongjoong retracts and clears his throat again. “I’m worried about you, Young-ah.”

The nickname stings. Hongjoong barely calls him anything besides his own name. 

“What happened today in the interview, it really wasn’t a big deal. It can be edited out.” Hongjoong tries again this time, body having to reach to touch Wooyoung’s shoulder. Wooyoung stays as still as a board. “This is what I’m talking about,” Hongjoong says quietly to Wooyoung’s physical response.

Wooyoung wants to release the dam. He wants to tell Hongjoong about the video comments, about the skipped meals, about the midnight runs. A sudden chill runs down the back of his neck. No, he doesn’t want to tell him about the attempt. Even he wants to forget the feel of his fingers pushing down his throat. 

San obviously hadn’t told Hongjoong what he saw on his phone. But he didn’t really have to. Wooyoung knew the members would pick up on his changed behavior. Going from near-constant, tangible touch to just about nothing at all in a short window of time wasn’t subtle.

Wooyoung understood that this is going to end in one of two ways: either he is going to have to disclose  _ something _ to Hongjoong and expect his leader to have daily check ins until he is deemed his “normal self” again, or management will have to get involved. Wooyoung knows they probably already might be but are waiting to see how the group leader will handle the situation first. 

Wooyoung wants to be bigger than himself, so he looks Hongjoong in the eyes for the first time and says, “I do want to apologize. I should have been more present during the interview; please accept my apology.” Hongjoong’s hand on Wooyoung’s shoulder dips with him as the younger bows in admission. 

Hongjoong nods his acceptance and waits for Wooyoung to continue speaking. 

“I—I do want to ask if we can talk tomorrow instead?” 

Hongjoong’s brow furrows and he tilts his head, still not speaking. 

Wooyoung jumps back in with, “I know I’ve been...off lately. I just—I need a second to gather my thoughts. Maybe sleep on it? I don’t know.” Wooyoung places his hand on top of Hongjoong’s and breathes deeply. “I promise we’ll talk tomorrow. I just need some time.”

“Okay,” is all his leader offers with the following squeeze of his shoulder. 

Wooyoung knows that there is so much Hongjoong wants to say; he doesn’t know if he is grateful or disappointed. 

Wooyoung exits the room alone and finds that all of the lights are off, save for the light above the stove that faintky illuminates the rest of the room. As if on cue, one of the bathroom doors swing open and Seonghwa is scurrying towards his and Hongjoong’s room. Wooyoung turns his head from their closed bedroom door and automatically focus on the dimly lit frame of the person sitting in the middle of the couch. 

“Good evening,” San says; Wooyoung can hear the small smile in his voice. 

Before Wooyoung can respond, he hears some muffled talking behind him in his hyung’s room, then the quiet creak of a door opening again. Seonghwa is back, shuffling around the pair to grab his laptop and blanket from the couch; he smiles and waves awkwardly at his two deonsangs before going back into the room and settling for the night.

Wooyoung flips a light switch on and sees San making a face to contain his laughter. Wooyoung immediately sputters out a quiet laugh at San’s expression and he instantly feels 10 pounds lighter. 

When they’ve both regained some control, the atmosphere around them isn’t as tense, but there is still a blunt edge that both of them can feel. Wooyoung makes the first move and sits besides San, still aware of the distance between them. 

Wooyoung notices that San has his phone in his hands; Wooyoung’s fingers twitch at the sight, wanting it back and  _ not  _ wanting to revisit the shame from earlier. 

“I deleted the playlist, and the account,” San says matter-of-factly.

Wooyoung furrows his brows and opens his mouth to speak, San continues before he has the chance. “I think you already know I didn’t tell Hongjoong; it wasn’t because I didn’t want to…” he trails off, his fringe falls into his eyes as he shifts them down towards the cushion. “I--I did want to. I  _ still  _ do. But I wanted to give you the chance to talk to me first.” San spares a look at Hongjoong’s closed door. “Did you talk to him?”

“No,” Wooyoung says so softly. “I apologized for messing up the flow of the interview, but. Yeah, I wanted to talk to you first, too.” 

San smiles softly at the admission.

Wooyoung takes a deep breath and closes his eyes to center himself. There are two voices screaming at each other across the forefront of his mind.  _ Tell him! Talk to him!  _ and  _ Don’t you dare. This is your fault and your problems. Don’t be weak and bring him down with you.  _

“I don’t think I like myself anymore,” he blurts out in a flurry. His whole body is clenched up and tight like a coil ready to be released. His heart rate is picking up at a considerable pace and he is so  _ nervous.  _

San doesn’t say anything at first, he just continues to look at the phone sitting between them. “Is that why you won’t let anyone touch you?”

Wooyoung nods.

“Can I touch you?”

Wooyoung holds his breath for a beat before it stutters out of him unevenly. San is his best friend. In such a short time they have developed such a strong bond and Wooyoung doesn’t know if he could ever have a closer friend. It’s a no brainer that Wooyoung would do just about anything for San to see him smile; to make him happy. And he knows that San feels the same. 

With all of his courage mustered, Wooyoung nods his head minutely and keeps his eyes closed while he moves closer to San; their knees nearly touching. 

A hand comes to rest on his knee, mirroring the action Jongho had done earlier in the day. Wooyoung still slightly recoils at the touch but gets himself back under control quickly. The hand lifts gently until only fingertips are touching the fabric of his black pants, moving in concentric circles. 

“Young-ah, don’t ever think you’re not worthy enough for this.” San’s voice comes in a whisper; so smooth and like balm to Wooyoung’s frayed nerves. 

Another hand is on him then, this time his shoulder, right where Hongjoong was. “Or this,” San murmurs. 

Wooyoung is focused on his breathing, trying with everything he has to silence the antagonising screaming in his mind:  _ don’t don’t don’t DON’T TOUCH!  _ He allows San to continue.

San moves his hand from Wooyoung’s shoulder to slide across the line of his collarbone before slipping to graze up the side of his neck. Wooyoung shudders but remains in place, breathing still a little ragged. 

“I know this is something you have to come to terms with on your own. But I want to help you; I want to reassure you.” 

Wooyoung’s eyes flutter open softly when San says, “Look at me.” He’s direct, but there is no heat in his voice. 

He watches with muted unease as San brings both of his hands to cup the sides of Wooyoung’s cheeks.  _ Chubby cheeks,  _ the voice corrects him. Wooyoung downcasts his gaze again. The pads of San’s thumbs tap three times on Wooyoung’s skin to direct his attention back to him.

“You are so beautiful just the way you are.” 

Wooyoung’s breath hitches and his eyes prickle at the corners. San see’s the disbelief plainly written all over his face.

He half-pulls Wooyoung onto his lap and places his hands back on Wooyoung's cheeks. Their faces are closer now and Wooyoung feels like he is going to suffocate. 

“You are whole. You are complete. You have nothing missing,” San voices, breath like a shiver ghosting over him. Wooyoung shakes his head and lowers his eyes again, not wanting his friend, his  _ best  _ friend to see him so broken. 

San lets Wooyoung fall into his chest. Arms coming to wrap around him and hold him secure as sobs bubble up out of the younger.

San is a pillar of strength every time Wooyoung crashes into him; wave after wave, he still stays sure and embraces Wooyoung through it. 

Time passes on; Wooyoung isn’t sure how much time, but it’s enough for his mind to be blissfully quieted and for the sobs to have subsided. 

San must have taken that as a sign to gently maneuver Wooyoung to bring his head back parallel with his own but still keeping him close. 

All Wooyoung can see is warmth in San’s easy smile. The tears are back, but his breathing is easy now. Wooyoung doesn’t move when San assuredly leans in to kiss the moisture underneath each eye. Wooyoung’s sighs at the gentle press of lips and all he wants to do is fling his arms around San and apologize for how he’s been acting and for letting the hate affect him so badly. But he knows that San understands. He knows that San will give him what he needs because he knows him so well.

San continues to place the most delicate, barely-there kisses all along Wooyoung’s face; telling him again and again like a mantra  _ you are worthy, you are whole, you are complete, you are beautiful.  _

He didn’t know how touch-starved he was until he started reeling from the kisses. San’s hands move back and forth between holding his face, to sliding up and down his arms, to carding through his hair. Wooyoung accepts it all greedily and wants more. 

Wooyoung is sure that San really can read his mind.

San tilts Wooyoung’s head to the side and presses their lips together. San is sure and steady; Wooyoung is quivering as his hands find purchase on the sides of San’s neck. 

That’s all it is because that’s all Wooyoung needs. San’s kisses travel across the planes of Wooyoung’s face before returning as a gentle touch to Wooyoung’s lips. There aren’t anymore words to be said; everything is spelled out sublimely with each press of San’s lips. 

They seemed to move at the same time to part from each other; both taking note of the flush dusting the other’s cheeks. 

The air isn't awkward. It isn't thrumming with desire. It is just a lofty peace that Wooyoung positively melts in. 

They don’t talk for the rest of the night; both stay content in each other’s presence until yawns weraree happening simultaneously. San walks Wooyoung to his bedroom door a few steps away and keeps his gaze soft as he smiles a closed-mouthed, dimpled smile. Wooyoung genuinely returns the smile back and pulls his hyung in for a tight hug. There is still a residual twinge of discomfort, but the sigh that San blows out against his neck chases it right away. 

San pulls away first and then places Wooyoung’s phone in his hand before walking away with a small wave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> P.S. This is NOT beta-read. Just something I'm doing for fun to pass some time and let out some stress. I wanted to experiment with present-tense 3rd person narrative and I can't switching between past and present and it is driving me nuts LMAO. I hope it doesn't take away from the experience of reading the fic! I left some spots in past tense because I feel like it made sense but what do I know lmao. Thanks for reading!


	3. Seonghwa - Nose Kisses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Friends! This sick fic was total self indulgence on my part; but let's be real, this whole thing is trend of soft!hyungs/members is all self indulgence lol. I hope you are all staying safe, wearing your masks, and being kind to yourself and each other. Also, is anyone else devastated that Ateez's last stage was yesterday ):

Though Seonghwa is often the recipient of both Wooyoung and San’s near merciless teasing, Wooyoung does hold a great measure of respect towards his hyung. 

Seonghwa’s care is like a memory of home; comforting, familiar. His smile is warm, his words affirming, and his presence is as an anchor. Though their time together as members hasn’t been long, Wooyoung admits that he has taken an inclination towards the eldest. 

_But who wouldn’t?_ Wooyoung wonders to himself from the confines of his bed; gaze fixed on an aloof Seonghwa. He’s sitting in Wooyoung’s small room in an even smaller chair tucked in a corner facing the foot of Wooyoung's bed. Seonghwa doesn’t seem to mind as he is thoroughly distracted by his phone. (He was probably looking at a vintage range of Gundam model kits to assemble; what a nerd.)

Wooyoung had caught some type of cold from who-knows-where and was having a hard time with recovering due to sheer boredom and loneliness. Deemed as mild but incredibly annoying by the company’s on-hire physician, Wooyoung was ordered to suffer in his lonesome and to stay away from the other members to avoid anyone else getting sick. (Though, that rule didn’t stop Seonghwa and San from frequently checking in.)

The medicine that was given was officially deemed as the worst tasting thing in the entire world—the doctor agrees—Wooyoung could barely tolerate the stuff and he was expected to ingest the medicine four-times a day for another four days! Wooyoung made a habit of skipping doses when no one was around to make sure he took it from the safety on the other side of the bedroom door. But Park Seonghwa wasn't one to be fooled so he had taken the "safely monitor/baby-sit Wooyoung" role upon himself and made sure that Wooyoung was taking his meds so he could properly recover. 

Wooyoung would have challenged his hyung at any other time for the sole purpose of getting underneath his skin. But if Wooyoung was honest, he liked that Seonghwa took care of him (bordering on the edge of babying him, but he didn't have to admit that to anyone else). He liked the way Seonghwa had taken to spoon feeding him Wooyoung's own recipe for ginseng chicken soup, he liked the way Seonghwa would steady the back of Wooyoung’s head with a reassuring touch whenever he'd give the younger member a dose of the nasty-medicine; now affectionately named swamp-sludge. He always affirmed Wooyoung with a gentle caress at the nape of his neck when the younger would dial in the drama to a ten; never failing to sputter at the taste and frantically gulp down an entire water bottle. Seonghwa chuckles every time and every time, Wooyoung feels such affection. 

Seonghwa jostles Wooyoung out of his reverie with a hand over his blanketed-knee, thumb moving in feather-like lines. “You okay there? You’ve been spaced out for like the last five minutes.”

Wooyoung clears his throat, hoping to also swallow down some embarrassment. Seonghwa just smiles, easily reading him. 

“Well,” Seonghwa pats Wooyoung’s knee and stands. “It’s about time for your last dose of the swamp sludge. I think there’s some leftover clear soup in the fridge to help with the aftertaste; do you want some meat with it or just the soup for now?”

Wooyoung ignores the question and settles for a good whine instead. “Hyuuuuung, can’t I just take my next dose tomorrow?” His arms come to cross over his chest as he pouts. “Skipping one day won’t kill me,” Wooyoung grumbles, sinking further into his blanket cocoon. 

“Yeah, it won’t kill you, but you’ll probably be sick longer.”

Hm. He has a point. Seonghwa smiles as Wooyoung groans his acceptance. The younger sits back up but keeps his arms crossed and eyes away from Seonghwa for good measure. Perhaps a little more pout could still win him over?

When Wooyoung noticed that Seonghwa hadn’t moved from where he stood, he sneaks a peak out of the corner of his eye. Seonghwa was smirking. 

Of course he caught on. 

That was their tug of war. Wooyoung was always so unruly but acted demure whenever Hongjoong would send Seonghwa to scold him. It seemed like his hyung had a soft spot for the way Wooyoung would poke his lower lip out just a tiny bit in a pout. Or the way he would gaze up at the taller member through his long eyelashes and speak so sweetly. Though there was still a 50/50 chance he’d still end up with a scolding, the other half would end with Seonghwa sweetly playing right along; leaving them both fuzzy. 

Seonghwa nudges Wooyoung’s shoulder, slightly causing the younger to sway. Wooyoung sticks his lower lip out a little further and brings his knees to his chest, simultaneously scooting over to make room as Seonghwa presses a knee into the mattress. 

He leans into Wooyoung’s bubble and places the back of his hand across Wooyoung’s forehead. Wooyoung lets out a closed-mouth sigh at the coolness of the back of his hyung’s hand against his clammy forehead. 

“Not as warm as yesterday so that’s good. Aren’t you happy the swamp sludge is making you feel better?” Seonghwa questions as he slips his hands into Wooyoung’s hair to massage his scalp. 

Wooyoung’s eyes are closed at this point and the pout has been wiped right off his face; bliss happily taking its place. 

“Hmm,” Wooyoung replies with a hum, still reveling in the touch. 

See, if he had just taken the medicine and ate the soup, Seonghwa would be up and out and Wooyoung would be left alone _again_. He much prefers to get his way even if he knows it’ll be relatively short-lived. But, having some prolonged attention and physical contact in exchange for—what Wooyoung is convinced is poisoned—medicine and probably a scolding for being so difficult is definitely worth it. 

Seonghwa has both knees on the bed now; he coaxes Wooyoung to straighten his legs out and positions himself with one knee on either side of Wooyoung’s left thigh. 

“Hyung? Why’d you— _umph_!” Wooyoung opens his eyes and Seonghwa is already jamming a spoon containing the questionable liquid right into Wooyoung’s open mouth as he started to speak. 

Well, that didn’t last long. Seonghwa was usually a little more back and forth with his talking whenever he indulged the younger in his dramatics, but it seemed like he was only feeding into Wooyoung for a minute to get his way. 

Wooyoung moans pathetically around the spoon and swallows thickly as Seonghwa’s other hand trails fingers over Wooyoung’s throat to encourage him. 

The hand moves to Wooyoung’s cheek; he sags into it and mopes knowing that Seonghwa was getting ready to leave soon. 

That’s the thing about Seonghwa. He always seemed to just _know_ what it is you’re asking for before you say a word. Either he’s a master at body language or Wooyoung is just too much of an open book and easily readable.  Perhaps that's why Seonghwa was always flagged as the Eomma of their group. 

Wooyoung knows that he can’t always rely on Seonghwa’s guesses and that proper communication is needed in all types of relationships. But when the days were dragging along and Wooyoung could feel his energy being sapped away by his work, having someone just _know_ what it is you need is a comfort in and of itself. Wooyoung was very fond of Seonghwa’s comfort. 

There’s a bottle in his hands then and Wooyoung drinks without question, swishing the liquid around to cleanse his mouth of the foul taste. He clicks his tongue a few times and settles the bottle on his night stand. 

When he feels the bed become a little lighter, he reaches and grabs Seonghwa’s wrist to stop him from getting up. Seonghwa doesn’t give him a questioning look, doesn’t snatch his hand away. Instead he leans in close, so close that Wooyoung instinctively backs up until he hits the head board with a soft thud. He can feel the tips of his ears reddening at their proximity. 

Seonghwa smiles a knowing smile and brushes his nose against Wooyoung’s a few times in a bunny kiss before saying, “I’m not leaving you, just wanted to get that clear soup so you can get some food and electrolytes in you.” He’s still so close, every word causing his breath to meet the damp skin of Wooyoung’s lips. 

Wooyoung nods and lets go of Seonghwa. As his hyung leaves the room and shuts the door behind him, Wooyoung shakes his head and runs his fingers through his hair a few times. 

That was, different. He crinkles his nose at the ghost sensation of having Seonghwa’s own brush against it. 

Coming back almost as quickly as he had left, Seonghwa has a medium-sized bowl of broth and saltines in tow. 

They sit in companionable silence as Seonghwa finds his way back on the bed in the same half-straddling position as before. At least now the contents of the spoon being carefully pushed into his mouth was warm and delicious and created a contented feeling in Wooyoung by the time he finished the bowl. 

Seonghwa was so patient the whole time; never rushing and fully attentive to Wooyoung. 

Seonghwa sits back on his heels and places the bowl of soup and half-eaten sleeve of crackers on the side table next to the empty water bottle. 

Wooyoung sneaks a glance at this alarm clock; 10:30pm. He really should be asleep right now and definitely knows Seonghwa should have been in bed an hour ago since he's been getting up even earlier than the rest of the members to stick to his new developed gym routine. 

The younger sighs his defeat, knowing that he’ll just have to keep himself entertained by his phone until he inevitably falls asleep. 

“What is it, Wooyoung-ie?” Seonghwa’s voice is low, almost as low as it in in the morning when he first wakes up. Wooyoung fights back a shiver. 

“I—uh. Well. I was just, hoping—maybe...” Wooyoung picks at the edge of his shirt sleeve with his eyes downcast. 

A pair of hands are on either side of Wooyoung’s cheeks. The touch is still cooling again this warm skin. He feels grounded. 

“What do you need, Young-ah?” Seonghwa asks again differently this time; voice still tender and quiet. 

“I don’t want you to leave yet.” Wooyoung speaks so softly that few works are said above a whisper. 

Seonghwa bends and repeats. The tip of his nose touches Wooyoung’s and he shakes his head from side-to-side. Wooyoung fights not to crinkle his nose at the contact. “I’m proud of you, you know?” Seonghwa says with a half-smile; he sits back and lays himself down with as respectable amount of distance that is possible between them on Wooyoung’s twin-sized mattress.

Seonghwa’s eyes are on Wooyoung’s and the younger feels squirmy under all the attention even if this is _exactly_ what he wanted. Seonghwa picks up where he left off and says, “I know you wear your charisma and extroversion well, but I also know you have a hard time asking for things...” Seonghwa trails off as he touches his pointer finger to Wooyoung’s chest. When had the blanket come down again? Wooyoung wills himself to relax and continues to listen. 

Seonghwa chuckles at Wooyoung's obvious internal struggle. “Thank you for opening up a part of this for me,” Seonghwa draws a circle around where Wooyoung’s heart sits beneath his chest for emphasis. “The more sides I get to see of you—the more sides we _all_ get to see of you, and of each other, allows us to become closer. And that in turn allows us to depend on each other when we need it most. We’re a team, right?”

Wooyoung nods slowly. 

Seonghwa smiles that same toothy half-smile. Has he stopped smiling once this whole time? 

“So, that’s why I’m proud of you. You’ve grown a lot since debut and I’m glad I get to be a part of it. I’m—I’m glad I get to help.” 

Wooyoung’s face falls and speaks his confusion with no need for words. He opens his mouth to undoubtedly protest his Hyung’s _terrible_ observation (because Wooyoung certainly doesn’t _feel_ like he’s made any progress) but is cut off with a peck to the tip of his nose.

“...” Wooyoung's mouth is still open, tongue poised to bicker but the kiss launches any words, any _syllables_ he had right into another stratosphere. 

Seonghwa (that bastard) seemed awfully pleased with himself. 

Wooyoung, very flustered, abruptly turns his back to Seonghwa; still wondering why in the world he couldn’t say anything.

Seonghwa lazily traces lyrics, crescent moons, his name backwards, and whatever else comes to mind on the plane of Wooyoung’s back with the tips of his fingers until he can hear the younger’s breath even out with sleep. 

And after oh-so carefully extracting himself from Wooyoung’s bed, taking care to make as little noise as possible; Seonghwa attempts to balance the empty soup bowl, a demolished water bottle, saltine crackers, and his phone in one hand while he reaches to turn the bedroom light off. 

He takes another look at Wooyoung in the dark; the fondness in his eyes is almost tangible presence. 

—

“Hyung-ie! _Hyung-ie_ ~” Wooyoung’s whine is equal parts grating and endearing. What was new? “Time for your medicine—oh yeah, wait. Oh! Swamp sludge, right? Haha!”

Seonghwa sniffles and braces himself with a bottle of sprite in one hand and stale saltines in the other as Wooyoung gleefully shoves the cold medicine into Seonghwa’s mouth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos do the heart good! Thank you for reading. See ya next week!


	4. Mingi - Head Kisses

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a 'lil short but I was happy to get most of this written in one go! I definitely had another idea with Mingi being loud and crazy with Wooyoung, but I wanted to explore a slightly different side of him with this fic. I hope you all enjoy!
> 
> Come hang out with me on
> 
> [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ZealousM2/)

“So, you’re actually going to get up at 5am tomorrow?”

“I already told you I would like 3 times!”

Wooyoung stares at Mingi incredulously and crosses his arms before questioning, “And you’re not going to just dip out and try to sleep in, right?”

Mingi rolls his eyes. “We’ve been at this for almost-“ he checks the imaginary watch on his wrist, “I don’t know probably like 10 minutes now?!” He grabs Wooyoung by the shoulders and ducks down a bit to level with him. “You and me and some running shoes have a date with the great outdoors at 5 freaking am tomorrow.” 

“Okay,” Wooyoung sighs while adjusting his glasses. “Thanks for doing this, by the way.”

Mingi smiles that signature boxy, open mouthed smile. “I’m sorry what? Hyung didn’t hear you.”

Wooyoung playfully elbows him in the ribs and stomps away with Mingi’s laughter rolling behind him. 

—

Wooyoung didn’t have bad ideas. No, it was usually the fault of someone  _ planting _ said bad idea into his mind and influencing his thoughts! Why else would he have “thought of” waking up so early to exercise? Why else would he be staring daggers at Mingi who stands at the foot of his bed at 4:30 in the morning? 

Nope, this was definitely Mingi’s fault. He deserves the death daggers because his smile is too large and genuine this early in the morning. 

Wooyoung gifts Mingi with a long-suffering sigh before he  _ barely _ manages to sit up on his bed. Mingi ignores him (what’s new) and grabs Wooyoung’s shoulders. “See? Who’s the one trying to sleep in?” he says with an amused tone, shaking Wooyoung’s shoulders in time with his words. 

Wooyoung scoffs and bats Mingi’s hands away. “Hyung, it’s literally 4:30! I said _5am_. I need those extra 30 minutes. I don’t think I have ever even see 4:30am in my life.”

“Yeah but we need that extra time to get dressed and stretch; by the time it's 5, we’ll be ready for our run!” Mingi pushes the tips of his fingers into Wooyoung’s soft sides, forcing the younger awake and turning into a giggling mess.

Wooyoung finally jumps out of Mingi’s reach to stop the incessant tickling. It made it really hard to glare at his hyung when he couldn’t stop the constant stream of cackling. Much to Wooyoung’s chagrin (and Mingi’s delight) he got dressed. 

—

“H- _hyung_!” Wooyoung pants while bent over his knees. “I can’t-ugh-I can’t go on anymore. Seriously. My heart is going to explode.”

“I’m sorry? I can’t hear what you’re saying over all your drama assaulting my ears.”

Wooyoung wishes with every fiber of his being that he had something solid in his pockets to chuck right at Mingi’s stupidly happy and not very sweat-slick forehead. 

“Seriously, I need a break. I think I pushed myself a little too hard there.” 

Mingi’s expression changes and in an instant he is back by Wooyoung’s side. His hand settles on the small of the younger's back, slightly helping Wooyoung relax the tremors that are running across his muscles. “Hey,” Mingi starts, “I-I didn’t mean to egg you on so long. I was just super proud of you for keeping up and..” His words stay for a moment as Mingi looks over his shoulder at their dorm building not more than a 0.5 mile straight shot ahead. “I thought we could get all the way through without stopping.” He looks back to Wooyoung who still has his head parallel with the floor as he works on evening out his breathing. 

Wooyoung tries to laugh but the sound is more of a grunt. “Yeah, well,” he takes a few more deep breaths before he adds, “We’ve been around the block nearly 4 times.” Another pause, another deep breath. “That’s almost a full hour of non-stop running.”

Mingi’s frown deepens. Wooyoung really doesn’t look so hot. Of course Wooyoung wouldn’t be physically ready for a non-stop 5k. He just wanted to get started for today and Mingi dialed them up to 10 somehow.

Mingi wordlessly crouches in front of Wooyoung, back facing the younger. When it didn't seem like Wooyoung noticed the gesture, Mingi nudges the side of the younger’s knee until he raises his head and looks straight at Mingi. He really didn’t think his frown could become any more of a frown.

Wooyoung’s cheeks were flushed a deep pink and fresh beads of sweat were budding across his face. His mouth was still open, not breathing as hard as before but still huffing out soft pants, chest rising and falling in time. When he doesn’t move fast enough, Mingi rolls his eyes and forcibly grabs Wooyoung’s hands forwards and ends up sending him crashing into Mingi’s back with a muffled _oof!_. Mingi wraps Wooyoung’s arms around his neck and hoists him up. Wooyoung can barely wrap his legs around Mingi’s waist; when he catches on, he murmurs to Wooyoung to keep his arms around his neck as the flat of his palms find the underside of Wooyoung’s thighs, hoisting him up until he is comfortably fitted against Mingi’s back and not at risk of falling.

Mingi has half a mind to jog the rest of the way to hurry and get Wooyoung home so he can hydrate and get into a bath. But he starts a moderate pace instead, not wanting to jostle Wooyoung too much and make his body more uncomfortable than it probably already was.

Wooyoung’s head is lolled to one side; his nose brushes against the skin at the juncture of Mingi’s neck and shoulder with every other step he takes. His breath tickles Mingi when he speaks, “I did want to point out that this is definitely both of our faults—well, more yours than mine, but still.”

Mingi doesn’t catch the light humor in Wooyoung’s tone. He stops walking and turns his head in Wooyoung’s direction, chin touching the tip of Wooyoung’s nose. “I’m really sorry Wooyoung-ie, i swear I didn’t mean to push you too hard I just—“

Wooyoung interrupts Mingi by nudging his head and Mingi faces forward again. “Yah, Hyung. I was just poking fun at you. _I_ really shouldn’t have pushed myself so hard.” Wooyoung chuckles and settles as Mingi starts walking again. “Really, even though it almost killed me, I’m happy you went with me and cheered me on the entire way.”

Mingi hums and treks onwards towards the dorms.

—

They try again nearly a week later. Wooyoung had been in so much pain afterwards that he (and Mingi) had been scolded thoroughly from Hongjoong over the risk of Wooyoung possibly injuring himself. After a lot of gesturing and insistence that he really was okay, Wooyoung was let off the hook to start exercising again much to Hongjoong’s hesitation.

Wooyoung was more than thankful that they were between comebacks at the moment so he didn’t have to worry about heavy dance-practices and full, exhausting daily schedules. The lull was his main motivation to work on his frame. He wanted to lean out a bit more so that his dancing would look more fluid and polished. He had worked hard to earn the position of main dancer, yet, there was always more to learn; always more ways to improve and move his body.

He really did look up to both Mingi and Yunho. Their movements were always so precise and clean and _purposeful._ Wooyoung felt confident in his skill and technique, but there wasn’t always passion burning behind his steps. Whenever Wooyoung would have to take a breather during a particularly challenging round of choreo, he’d always keep his eye on Mingi. Even in practice, his movements were calculated and his expression didn’t mirror bright eyes and soft smiles. No, he was all taunt lines and sloped eyes and it was captivating.

Wooyoung wants to be captivating. He wants all eyes on him.

So his first step seemed simple enough: do some cardio to increase his lung-capacity so he had greater endurance for dancing. And an added bonus was that it would lean him out just a bit as well. 

They meet up at a park that’s about a 15 minute walk from their dorms. It’s quiet—as it should be, being that it’s 5am. There’s a breeze drifting in currents through the air, rustling the faded red of Mingi’s hair. They smile at each other and don’t say a word when Mingi sets the pace for them.

They’re jogging in stride, each step a mirror from the other. Even though Mingi easily has longer legs than Wooyoung, the younger refused to fall behind the older dancer. That was enough push for him and he was sure Mingi could sense that with the way his gate would undulate from something closer to an actual run or steady like an afternoon stroll. They still don’t speak, which Wooyoung isn’t sure if he’s thankful for that or not; the silence is easy for them. The rhythmic tapping of their soles against concrete is enough to fill the air between them. The kind smiles exchanged from time-to-time is enough to push Wooyoung onward.

Mingi slows down after a while when he finds the bench he’d eyed the few times they lapped it on their jog. It was situated under an awning that faced the twinkling water of a small, man-made lake and it’s little circle of lit-up fountains. The sun would be rising soon.

Wooyoung appreciates the break and wanders away from Mingi for a moment to find a water fountain to drink from. Mingi takes a seat on the far left side of the bench to give Wooyoung enough space to sit and take a breather. When Wooyoung had gotten his fill of water, he walks back towards the bench and stops just short of it. Mingi is silhouetted by the light of fountains, his edges are glowing faintly of blues and reds and purples as the lights change colors. He walks closer until his hands find the planes of Mingi’s jacket-covered shoulders. Today, he’s wearing a simple all black track-suit. Nothing eye-catching on it’s own, but certainly something else when tints of color shift across it.

Mingi hums his acknowledgment as per usual at Wooyoung’s skinship. Wooyoung grounds the points of his thumbs into Mingi’s trapezius muscles and that earns him a hiss. “Yah! Careful back there. I went to the gym with San yesterday and I’m still a little sore.”

Wooyoung smirks to himself. “Sorry Hyung, I’ll be gentle.” He digs in again and giggles when Mingi springs out of his seat, rounding the bench and reaching for Wooyoung. Mingi might sport long legs and long arms, but Wooyoung was still smaller and lithe and knew how to maneuver himself well. Mingi grabs for Wooyoung’s wrist and Wooyoung quickly slips out of the way before turning on his heel to step behind Mingi and envelope him in a tight back hug; trying with all his might to lift the older off the ground.

He got an inch! He would be proud of that later. Wooyoung happily surrenders and lets Mingi break out of his grasp and in turn is dragged back to the bench and forcefully plopped on his butt. Mingi sits next to him with his arms crossed and a toothy-grin steady and in place. “You can be such a pest sometimes, you know that?”

“Mhm!” Wooyoung agrees.

Mingi shakes his head before looking back out over the horizon. The sun is peaking and is ready in all its glory to bathe Seoul in warm colors and daylight. He really does love watching sunrises over some kind of body of water. He loves the way the water meets the rays of sunshine in ripples of tiny, shimmering peaks.

He startles a bit when he feels a weight on his shoulder. Wooyoung had moved closer to Mingi and rested his head on the older’s shoulder and looped an arm around Mingi’s.

“Thank you for doing this with me, Mingi-ya,” Wooyoung says in a low voice.

Mingi shifts their position a bit; removing his arm from Wooyoung’s and instead curling it around Wooyoung's shoulders to draw him a little closer. Wooyoung moves up a bit so his head sits higher on Mingi’s shoulder; Mingi presses his lips to the top of Wooyoung’s head in an act of pure fondness before he murmurs, “You know, you don’t have to thank me every time we do this? I’m glad I can help you, Young-ah.” Mingi kisses the spot again before nuzzling his nose into it.

This time, Wooyoung hums in acknowledgment and contentment.

The silence returns to them and it’s still just as comfortable.


	5. Jongho-Neck kisses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jongho pauses the movie and puts a hand on Wooyoung’s arm to catch his attention. “Are you that scared of horror movies?” Jongho questions with a head tilt. 
> 
> “Of course I am!” Wooyoung’s sputters at the obvious question. “I HATE scary stuff. It makes my skin crawl and just—ugh,” Wooyoung fake gags and Jongho rolls his eyes. 
> 
> “Drama,” he mutters to himself. 
> 
> “Yah!” Wooyoung slaps Jongho’s thigh. “What did I tell you about respecting your elders?”
> 
> Jongho smirks. “‘Elders,’” he says with finger quotes mid-air, “Aren’t huge babies like you. I bet if I called Mingi or even Seonghwa in here they could watch this movie all the way through.”
> 
> “Press play.” Wooyoung has a fiery glint in his eye. The kind of glint that only comes when he is challenged and boy, Wooyoung can’t stand to lose.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LMAO Is it just me that is convinced that Jongho has a tiny baby crush on his hyung Wooyoungie? I mean, they are SOOOO adorable together. I tried to keep this away from romantic stuff because I wasn't really going for that in this story. So even though there is some Jongho!crisis, things still stay very PG-13. Also what is with me and Sad!Wooyoung lately? Who knows. Anyways, please comment and tell me what you think! I love talking about our boys (:

And now they’re finally done, yet, Wooyoung still seemed just as awake and energetic as he was before their vlive broadcast. 

Jongho wouldn’t necessarily classify himself as introverted, but, he does take great care to mind his social “battery” and right about now it’s quite low. 

But even though Wooyoung never seems to turn off the excitable, outgoing perks of his personality, it never comes off as overbearing or overwhelming (unless he intends it to be for teasing his members). Jongho welcomes the charge of Wooyoung’s infectious energy and in the moment offers that they watch a movie before going to sleep. Wooyoung feigns shock at the offer, citing that his sweet maknae never wants to spend this much time with him. Wooyoung happily obliges. 

  
With their tour still in motion, they didn’t really have the luxury of staying up late and sleeping in. They sometimes didn’t even get the chance to explore whatever city they were stopping in for the night. But they were allowed a full-day break for tomorrow as their last day in Berlin and then back on a plane to Amsterdam the following day. 

  
There isn’t much to choose from on the little TV in their hotel room. After another 5 minutes of picking through the TV guide, Wooyoung pipes up “Ugh, this is the worst. None of the shows on here have Korean subtitles!” He crosses him arm and sinks down into the covers. “No consideration.”

  
Jongho chuckles, “Yeah, cause I am sure there are _so_ many Koreans in Berlin that are whining about the same thing right now.” He laughs a little louder when Wooyoung punches him in the arm. 

  
Jongho would like to say that the reason Wooyoung is still in his bed (looking all cute with his hair pulled back in a beanie and oversized clothes as his pajamas) is because the TV is _slightly_ off-centered towards Jongho’s bed. _And_ they did finish the vlive on his side so why not just stay? The bed was definitely big enough for the both of them. 

  
Ah, there it is. Jongho lays down a mischievous look to his hyung and Wooyoung doesn’t miss it for a second. He raises an eyebrow and hums in question. 

  
“Let’s watch a scary movie.”

  
“Absolutely not-“

  
“Oh come on!” Jongho interrupts with a whine; trying with all his night to summon some maknae charm. “Look—see! This one has Korean subtitles! You can’t tell me that that is coincidence.”

  
Wooyoung looks unimpressed and continues to stare at Jongho.

  
“Hyung.”

  
“What?”

  
“We are meant to watch this movie. There is only one other one that has Korean subtitles and it looks like a really, _really_ terrible rom-com.”

  
Wooyoung furrows his brows and pushes at Jongho’s shoulder. “Hey! Don’t diss the rom-coms. Some of them are actually quite good...” he trails off when he notices that Jongho is pointedly ignoring him and starting the horror movie. 

  
Wooyoung digs the heels of his palms into his eyes and groans. “Why. Why are we watching this? Did you forget that I'm your hyung? Show some respect to your elders and turn this crap off.” Wooyoung refuses to look at the TV and instead keeps his eyes to the ceiling. 

  
Still ignoring him, much to Wooyoung’s clear annoyance, Jongho reaches over Wooyoung to turn the table-lamp off, leaving the room totally dark save for the blue-light glow of the TV. 

  
“Jongho-ie, I reeeeeeally don’t want to watch this,” Wooyoung says with his eyes now downcast to his feet. In the upper edges of his vision, he can just barely make out the current scene playing in the movie and even though nothing scary has happened yet, he feels his stomach lurch. 

  
Jongho pauses the movie and puts a hand on Wooyoung’s arm to catch his attention. “Are you that scared of horror movies?” Jongho questions with a head tilt. 

  
“Of course I am!” Wooyoung’s sputters at the obvious question. “I HATE scary stuff. It makes my skin crawl and just—ugh,” Wooyoung fake gags and Jongho rolls his eyes. 

  
“Drama,” he mutters to himself. 

  
“Yah!” Wooyoung slaps Jongho’s thigh. “What did I tell you about respecting your elders?”

  
Jongho smirks. “‘Elders,’” he says with finger quotes mid-air, “Aren’t huge babies like you. I bet if I called Mingi or even Seonghwa in here they could watch this movie _all_ the way through.”

  
“Press play.” Wooyoung has a fiery glint in his eye. The kind of glint that only comes when he is challenged and boy, Wooyoung can’t stand to lose. 

  
More than pleased with himself, Jongho settles into the comfort of the hotel-bed and starts the movie over. 

**

They were nearing 1 hour and 45 minutes in with about another half-hour to go. But, Jongho wasn’t sure they’d be able to finish it. 

  
Wooyoung was on the opposite side of the bed when the movie started and several badly-timed jump scares set Wooyoung nearly jumping right into Jongho’s lap. He wouldn’t say he _minded_ it necessarily, but the tremors from Wooyoung’s smaller body and the feeling of his pulse hammering hard against his skin, so much so that Jongho could see it on his neck, really made him rethink why he lured Wooyoung into watching a horror movie in the first place. 

  
Oh yeah, because he wanted an excuse to be close to his Hyung. Jongho knew Wooyoung was a big baby when it came to this sort of thing but he didn’t think Wooyoung would have a reaction like this. 

  
But if Wooyoung was anything, we could be extremely stubborn and didn’t admit defeat easily. Jongho didn’t have it in him to watch his hyung continue to be tortured anymore by one particularly gruesome scene. Jongho reaches with a groan from his stiff muscles for the remote control across the bed and quickly shuts the tv off. 

  
Wooyoung is silent, but at least he’s not trembling anymore. 

  
Jongho doesn’t really know what to say or what to do. He wants to apologize but that just feels wrong in this moment for some reason. Wooyoung acts before Jongho can speak; he stands and climbs into his own bed with his back towards the maknae. 

Well, Jongho couldn’t have messed this night up more even if he tried to. He fights back the urge to fall straight back into bed with a frustrated sigh. Instead, he shucks off his shirt and reaches again to put the remote on the night stand and turn off the light, completely shrouding the room in darkness save for a small sliver of light coming from beneath the drawn curtains. 

  
Jongho falls asleep easily enough when he allows himself to release his self-directed frustration. But, being the unfortunately light sleeper that he was, the sound of jostling sheets and feet padding across the room was enough to yank him out of his dreamless-sleep. 

  
Then, there’s a bright light from the bathroom. Jongho squints and burrows under the blankets a bit more to shield himself from the abrasive light. Were they always this bright? He hears the sound of the faucet at full blast for a few minutes; definitely longer than needed to wash your hands. Jongho didn’t hear a flush either, now that he thinks of it. 

  
Is Wooyoung okay? 

  
Jongho worries his bottom lip for a second, wondering if he should get up and check on him. 

  
The water is still splashing loudly against the basin of the sink when Jongho sees Wooyoung hunched over the counter. His face is dripping wet from what Jongho can make out from the mirror and half the counter is soaked with water. 

  
Jongho makes his presence known by calling Wooyoung’s name, not caring about dropping honorifics. Wooyoung snaps his head in Jongho’s direction. 

  
He can see the way Wooyoung’s eyes are puffy from what the older would probably say was sleep. But Jongho knew he had been crying. God, Jongho felt like such a jerk. 

  
When neither of them speak, Jongho reaches around Wooyoung to turn off the faucet. Then he grabs a neatly folded face-towel and goes to stand in front of Wooyoung. The older has his eyes downcast in embarrassment. 

  
Jongho doesn’t care about the water all over the counter. He just doesn’t want Wooyoung to soak anymore of his shirt that is sticking in places across his chest. Jongho lifts Wooyoung’s head with a hand on his check and carefully cleans and dries his face. Wooyoung lets Jongho do as he pleases without protest, but keeps his eyes averted with his brows furrowed. He looks, annoyed? Angry?

  
When Jongho’s finished, he speaks softly, “Hyung, I’ll get you another shirt,” Wooyoung crosses his arms defensively and moves past Jongho to leave the bathroom. Jongho frowns and trails after him and continues, “I just don’t want you to get your sheets wet and then you’re stuck sleeping like that.”

  
Wooyoung rounds on Jongho. This time his expression isn’t pinched, it’s back to being vulnerable and more pained at the mention of going back to sleep. Jongho glances at the clock on Wooyoung’s night stand for the first time since waking up. 2:25am. He walks over to his own-night stand to turn the lamp back on so he can see Wooyoung. 

  
“I don’t know if I can go back to sleep,” Wooyoung bites. His arms are back to being crossed over his chest but it serves to only make him seem smaller and more scared. 

  
Jongho should probably ask to switch rooms or something. Would it be absolutely unthinkable if he did it right now at this ungodly hour? Because he is positively sure that the result of his stupid teasing just cracked into the foundation of his and Wooyoung’s growing friendship. 

  
Jongho awkwardly rubs the back of his neck. “You could still at least change your shirt before you get back into bed,” he half murmurs to himself. 

  
“Gimme the black one on the floor.”

  
Jongho zeroes in on the black shirt near the foot of his bed. It was the shirt he had been wearing earlier. Jongho is puzzled but doesn’t argue. Doesn’t feel like he’s in a position to deny Wooyoung what he wants since Jongho is the reason he can’t even sleep. Well, _assuming_ it’s from the stupid movie he made them watch. 

  
He picks the shirt off the ground, shakes it a bit to rid it of any lint, turns it from being inside-out and tosses it to his hyung. Wooyoung wastes no time in taking off the soiled t-shirt before slipping into Jongho’s. 

  
Jongho’s first thought was that it was definitely bigger on Wooyoung. Of course it would be because Jongho is taller and broader. But something flips In Jongho’s stomach at the way it makes Wooyoung look so _small_. 

  
Jongho actually shakes his head to realign his thoughts. He sits on the side of his own bed and leans his bare forearms against his thighs. “D-do you want to talk about it?” It took everything he had to say that and now he feels like he’s going to throw up. Why is it so hard for him to do this kind of thing?

  
Wooyoung tries to smile, but there is pity in his eyes as he obviously senses how uncomfortable Jongho feels. Wooyoung declines with the shake of his head before he goes to turn the lamp back off. 

  
Jongho can’t see Wooyoung as well, but he can definitely make out the way Wooyoung moves towards him and nudges him so Jongho takes the hint to lay down. 

  
“Hyung-,” Jongho starts, again, puzzled. 

  
Wooyoung shushes him and slips into the blankets beside Jongho, urging the younger to move more so Wooyoung wasn’t half-lying over the edge. 

  
The bed was a queen so they definitely had enough space for the two of them to be comfortably away from each other. But Jongho’s heart was beating so fast and wild that Wooyoung might as well have been splayed across the maknae. 

  
Being the mind reader that Jongho was nearly 100% sure Wooyoung was—Wooyoung scoots his back closer until they’re touching; Jongho’s shoulder poking in between Wooyoung's shoulder blades. 

  
“Hyung-,” Jongho tries again. He isn’t surprised when Wooyoung cuts him off again. Except it’s with an annoyed-sounding sigh and his hand snatching Jongho’s right arm; yanking him until he's tuned onto his side and chest pressed against Wooyoung’s back. When Wooyoung releases Jongho’s arm, it’s suspended in mid air. 

What in the fuck is happening right now?

Jongho swallows and is really thinking about scrambling over onto the other bed before Wooyoung puts a hault to his racing thoughts—he is very good at that—and moves to bring Jongho’s hand down until it rests against the smooth fabric of his T-shirt over Wooyoung’s stomach. 

“If this is too much, you can tell me,” Wooyoung says so quietly it doesn't even really feel like he’s talking to Jongho. 

Jongho clears his throat when Wooyoung shifts a little against him. “I—um, this is. I mean. Are you, are you okay? I, yeah I’m good. Fine. Mhm.” 

Jongho wants to scream when he can literally _feel_ Wooyoung giggle. Wooyoung speaks again a little louder this time, a little more himself, “I just, well. I’ve always had really vivid dreams. And sometimes the things I watch or see or even do during the day can show up in my dreams if they’re impactful enough.”

Jongho draws back a little into himself, somehow feeling even worse than he did earlier. So Wooyoung definitely had a nightmare. Jongho can’t remember the last time he had one of those, let alone a dream that he could actually remember. Did Wooyoung imagine himself being chased by a crazed murderer with a chainsaw? Did it feel real enough to make him actually cry? Wooyoung doesn't stop Jongho when he removes his arm and retracts into himself.

“That’s the reason I hate movies like that. They just, they get stuck in my head, you know?” Wooyoung wraps his arms around himself in Jongho's absence and continues, “It’s hard for me to back down from a challenge, no matter how far-fetched, silly, stupid; whatever you want to call it. When you compared me to Mingi and Seonghwa, I knew they could do it, even thought Hwa-hyung is a total chicken.” Wooyoung’s body doesn’t move when he chuckles mirthless this time. 

“I guess I, I don’t know. I just wanted to be a cool hyung to you for once.”

Jongho’s mouth flies upon in shock. He grabs at Wooyoung’s shoulders and makes the older flip around to face him. “Are you kidding me?” Jongho’s says. Wooyoung just furrows his brows. 

Jongho shakes Wooyoung for punctuation as he speaks, “Hyung, I think you're so cool.”

“But—“

“No, listen,” it was Jongho’s time to interrupt Wooyoung now and he took full advantage of it. “You’re dancing, the way you move, the way you carry yourself. You voice. Your talent for performing. Even the way you are so loud and just out of control sometimes. All of it it so cool because it’s what makes you _you_ , hyung.” Jongho figures that since Wooyoung started this, maybe he’s okay with some physical touch. So he reaches and his hand lands back to Wooyoung’s cheek.

“I was a jerk for tonight. I should have paid more attention to you and how obviously uncomfortable you were. That makes me so, incredibly uncool.”

Wooyoung smiles and Jongho unconsciously rubs his thumb across the apple of Wooyoung’s cheek as it raises. 

“Yeah, you were. But I was also stubborn and sat through way too much of that—,” Wooyoung gestures towards the still dormant TV, “that terrible, awfulness. But, I just wanted some comfort, I guess?” Wooyoung ends it with a lilt in his voice, almost like he was asking a question.

“That’s why I wanted your shirt. That’s why I wanted some cuddles just to help me relax a bit so I can at least try and sleep tonight.”

Jongho nods in understanding and asks, “Do any of the other members help comfort you when you have trouble sleeping?”

Wooyoung nuzzles a bit into Jongho’s hand and closes his eyes as he answers sleepily, “It doesn't happen often. I can’t knock out anywhere like Hongjoong can, but it’s not too hard for me to sleep. It’s only when I have nightmares. That doesn’t happen often either. Yeosang-ie sometimes holds my hand for a while. Or if San-ie is around he’ll hold me and it really does help.” 

Jongho hums. So, it’s not a big deal. This is still platonic and friendly and okay. Jongho knows he has to address his teeny, tiny, little crush on his hyung with himself but now was definitely not the right time. Wooyoung needs some comfort and Jongho thinks he can get over his awkwardness long enough to help. 

With a rough sigh that blows past his lips, Jongho nods again and makes Wooyoung flip back over until they are back-to-chest again. Wooyoung yelps at being manhandled but automatically settles when Jongho draws him close and wraps an arm snug across Wooyoung’s waist. 

They don’t speak anymore and Jongho was hoping Wooyoung would at least talk to him until he slipped back into sleep. But Wooyoung really must have been tired because he was out like a light. 

Jongho tries to get comfortable in this new position. He had never comforted (cuddled) someone like this before. It’s supposed to be like a horizontal back-hug, right? And he had given Wooyoung a ton of those with no problem. This…this just felt a lot more intimate. Especially for the fact that Jongho eventually finds himself with his face buried against the side of Wooyoung's neck to best avoid his mop of hair. 

Some minutes go by and he feels himself slowly moving towards the edge of sleep until a thought slams him smack in the back of his head: he’s half naked cuddling his friend. His band-member. His TINY crush. Jongho inwardly groans but doesn’t move out of fearing of jostling Wooyoung. He’s stuck. 

A few deep breaths and some thought-releasing later, Jongho was able to calm himself down and actually fall asleep.

  
**

  
It’s 5:30am and Wooyoung is shaking so badly that Jongho wakes with a start. The blankets are down by their hips and Wooyoung is nearly soaked with sweat just like before. Jongho panics and tries to think of what to do. Does he wake Wooyoung up and go through this cycle all over again, should he try to be easy and console him in his sleep? Jongho goes for the latter and tightens his grip around Wooyoung’s waist to try and quell the shivering. It works a little. Jongho swallows as he carefully eases his hand under the hem of his shirt until his fingertips are touching the slick skin of Wooyoung’s stomach. He slides the palm of his hand over Wooyoung’s skin slowly in a caress until he reaches his chest. Jongho presses a bit in the center to try and ground the older. His heart is beating so fast. 

“Wooyoung-ah," Jongho whispers against Wooyoung’s neck. He then does the first thing that comes to mind; he sings to him. Jongho alternates between lightly pressing his palm against Wooyoung’s chest and and brushing his fingers across his front in comforting motions. All the while singing against the still-heated skin of Wooyoung’s neck. 

It takes some times, but Wooyoung finally comes down and stays asleep through it all. It’s nearly sunrise now, at 6:15am and Jongho is definitively worn out. 

Jongho isn’t really thinking anymore since he has been operating on cruise control for the last 45 minutes or so. He drops a kiss at the juncture of Wooyoung’s shoulder and neck, tightens his arm around Wooyoung one last time before slowly untangling himself from his hyung and turning so are were back-to-back.

  
**

  
Jongho is awoken at a much more reasonable hour but to a less than ideal situation with Wooyoung knocking the wind out of him by practically jumping on him. With a grunt, he shoves Wooyoung off and tugs the covers over his head. Being a little snake, Wooyoung slithers underneath the blanket and rolls over Jongho—driving slightly less air out of him this time—until he is situated with Jongho’s arms around his middle. Jongho grumbles as he nuzzles into the side of Wooyoung’s neck again and kisses the (ridiculously) soft skin a few times before he realizes what he’s doing. Jongho yells and launches himself off the bed until he is standing on unsteady feet. He suddenly feels a chill and, for the second time, realizes he is indeed half naked.

Jongho scrambles for a black hoodie and gray joggers and runs off to the bathroom with one leg still trying to make its way into a pant leg. He can hear Wooyoung giggle even with the door closed. Jongho chances a look at the mirror; his face is so red that it is mortifying. With is head in his hands, Jongho swears he is never rooming with Wooyoung again and he is NEVER watching another horror movie within a 5 mile radius of him.

After collecting himself for a moment, Jongho attempts to flatten out his bed head and makes his way back out of the bathroom. He finds Wooyoung still dressed in Jongho’s plain, black, tee, but changed out the sweats for some loose fitting jeans and Birkenstocks. He’s rummaging around for something in his suitcase until he reemerges with a quiet “Aha!” and a hoodie that he slips over Jongho’s shirt. Jongho internally shakes his head; he’s quite sure he's never seeing that shirt again. 

Wooyoung turns on his heel and when his eyes land on Jongho, he smiles something small and sweet. He approaches Jongho and takes hold of both of his hands. 

“Hey, thank you. So, so much for last night.” Wooyoung suddenly looks more bashful. “I know that skinship is new for you and everything so it was probably kinda weird but I really appreciated it. I slept much better.”

“Yeah I could tell by the way you attacked me this morning,” Jongho teased. 

Wooyoung releases one of Jongho’s hands and laughs with is eyes downcast as he rubs at the spot where Jongho kissed him multiple times. Jongho’s mouth goes dry. 

“I’m going to go see if anyone else is awake,” Jongho sputters so quickly and nearly trips over his feet as he flees the room with Wooyoung’s genuine, wind-shield wiper laugh echoing behind him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who do you think is next and what kisses will be had? I'll give you a hint; a certain blue-haired boy (;
> 
> Also, is it just me or does anyone else miss ATEEZ BADLY right now?


End file.
